Boxing Gloves
by yellow 14
Summary: Albus Severus Potter finds an old pair of boxing gloves and finds a way to get his revenge on James. A response to the Wii Sports Challenge by ChallengeMistress87.


Disclaimer: Don't own and never will.

AN: This can be seen as a prequel to my fic 'House's Four and is a response to the Wii Sports Challenge by ChallengeMistress87.

"Dad, can I ask you a question?" Albus asked as he twiddled away with his hands behind his back as he held on to his latest discovery.

"I was under the impression you already had," Harry said with a smile and Albus blushed slightly.

"What I meant was…oh you know what I meant!" he finished, clearly flustered and Harry gave him a small grin of amusement. Before Harry could say anything, Albus pulled out a pair of black boxing gloves from behind him. "I found these in the attic and I was wondering if I could keep them?"

"Do you know what they are Al?" Harry asked with some amusement. "They're not magical you know."

"I just wanted to use them for a project of mine," Albus admitted and Harry looked curiously at his middle child. "Something for when I go to Hogwarts," he added and Harry's expression softened.

"Well…I DO NOT want to see you using them on your brother or getting into trouble with them," he said and Albus smiled.

"Trust me dad, I'll be as good as gold," he said and Harry looked at him dubiously. Albus however ignored his expression and quickly ran out of the lounge before any further questions could be asked.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP

"He said yes," Albus said as he approached Dudley Dursley (or as good as said yes, he mentally added) and Dudley nodded.

"That is a surprise," Dudley said as he pulled on his own boxing gloves. "I would have thought that he would have been against the idea from the start, especially given the way I used to be."

"Well you're not like that now?" Albus pointed out amicably. "And I'm pretty sure I'm different from you when you were my age. So lets do this. Show me how to box!"

Dudley chuckled with amusement at Albus's eagerness before shaking his head slightly.

"The first thing you do, is warm up first," Dudley explained patiently. He laid down on his front and placed his hands beside his shoulders and indicated to Albus that he should do the same. When Albus had done that, he nodded to him.

"This," Dudley explained as he used his hands to push himself up while leaving his body straight and his feet on the floor, "is called a press-up."

"What's the use of a press-up?" Albus asked in a slightly dubious voice and Dudley chuckled with amusement.

"The first thing you learn about ANY fighting style, sport or exercise regime is that when you start training, you have to warm up first," Dudley explained firmly. "Otherwise you could hurt yourself badly. Now do ten of them."

Silently grumbling mentally, he lowered himself and did the press ups and stood up when he finished.

"Okay, now what?" he asked and Dudley nodded to the ground.

"Do you know how to do sit ups?"

"Well…"

"Never mind, I'll show you what you need to do and you just follow me," Dudley said as he laid down on the hard floor with his knees in the air and his feet on the ground and Albus followed suit.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP

It took almost fifteen minutes for Albus and Dudley to finish warming up and Albus was feeling thoroughly out of breath.

"And now, we're ready to start the lesson," Dudley said cheerily in a way that Harry would not have believed possible. Albus raised an eyebrow in disbelief and Dudley chuckled. "No pain, no gain."

"So when do we start to learn boxing," Albus huffed as he caught his breath and Dudley smirked.

"Right now," he replied as he raised his hands and balled them into fists. "Close your hand into a fist and throw a punch at me."

Albus balled his fists and prepared to throw a punch, when suddenly Dudley frowned.

"No, no, no, not like that!" he exclaimed, shaking his head. "You tuck your thumb outside your fingers, tucked in tightly like this. Now throw a punch!"

Feeling more than a little stupid, Albus swung his fist and Dudley smiled.

"Well you have the aggression behind your punches anyway," he said with a smile. "Now I'll show you HOW to throw a punch." Dudley stood up straight and faced a punch bag standing in the centre of the room. With a cry, he threw a punch straight into the punch bag and the bag flew backwards. Then he did it again, but this time in slow motion and Albus watched as he saw his cousin's hand twist as he threw the punch, the way he leaned forward slightly into the punch. "Now do what I've just done."

"Exactly what you just did?" Albus asked and Dudley rolled his eyes.

"Yes, exactly what I've just done," he replied with a slight sigh of exasperation and Albus punched the punch bag hard.

"Howzat!" he exclaimed as he saw his punch make an indentation into the bag. Dudley frowned.

"Not exactly perfect," he said firmly. "But not bad. Come over here, I'll guide you through the punch."

Albus walked over and Dudley slowly guided his punch into the bag, showing him where he had gone wrong and Albus smiled. He loved it when a plan came together.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP

Albus was sitting in his room, a middling sized room for its function with a bed and small desk for him to sit at, when the second part of his plan fell into place.

"Now Alby, you know that if you end up in Slytherin, we'll be forced to hex you, you know?" James said conversationally and Albus shrugged.

"Perhaps you'd like to get in some practise now James? See if you can hex me before I get you?" he said with a shrug. "After all, you might not get a chance to once I start learning some real magic."

"Pfft!" James snorted with contempt. "As if you'd ever be a match for me magically!"

"I can beat you without even using magic," Albus replied in a bored tone. "Try me, I dare you." James raised an eyebrow in disbelief and Albus rolled his eyes. "I promise, no magic from me at all," he said exasperatedly and James pulled out his wand.

"Well if you insist, little brother of mine," he said with a smirk. "Petrificus To-"

His spell casting was suddenly interrupted by a fast right hook from Albus, slamming into the side of his head, quickly followed by a fast uppercut. As he lay dazed on the floor, Albus smirked at him.

"Told you I didn't need magic to get you," he said as he hopped over James. Revenge really was a dish best served cold. Especially revenge for the booby traps that James had managed to spring on him this summer.


End file.
